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By Bill Ladson and Joe Morgan
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MLB.com |

Werth's absence from the lineup also paved the way for the newly acquired Asdrubal Cabrera to move from seventh to second in the Washington lineup. Cabrera has more experience against Ervin Santana than any other Nationals player.

Cabrera also has 1,847 career plate appearances in the No. 2 spot, dwarfing his 398 in the ninth hole, his second-most frequent spot in the order. Anthony Rendon, who leads Washington with 50 extra-base hits in 2014, batted third.

"Asdrubal's seen him, he's got 34 at-bats against him, so he knows the pitcher," Williams said. "He's comfortable in that spot. You move Anthony down to three and he's comfortable there, too. With Jayson out, we've got to make adjustments, but it fits with those two guys given their comfort in both those spots."

Bill Ladson is a reporter for MLB.com and writes an MLBlog, All Nats All the time. He also could be found on Twitter @WashingNats. Joe Morgan is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.